Backpack Leaf Blowers

roadracer247

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Home owner here looking for advice on which leaf blower to buy. I’m a fan of my Stihl chainsaw. So I’m tempted to stay with their product line, but I have no loyalties.

Looking for a backpack style leaf blower. Going back and forth between Stihl vs Echo. What are you guys using?
 

My94GT

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Home owner here looking for advice on which leaf blower to buy. I’m a fan of my Stihl chainsaw. So I’m tempted to stay with their product line, but I have no loyalties.

Looking for a backpack style leaf blower. Going back and forth between Stihl vs Echo. What are you guys using?
My brother in law ownes a landscaping business and has used many different brands, he said I should have went stihl after he saw I picked up an echo hand held.

Back pack stihl will be in my list of things to buy come spring.
 

Malern28us

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Echo top of the line backpack. I have 1 acre and refuse to rake ever again. I got an amazing deal on it and a 5 year warranty. Stihl can suck it....
 

KingBlack

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Home owner here looking for advice on which leaf blower to buy. I’m a fan of my Stihl chainsaw. So I’m tempted to stay with their product line, but I have no loyalties.

Looking for a backpack style leaf blower. Going back and forth between Stihl vs Echo. What are you guys using?
bay area...how much land are you maintaining?
 

velocicaur

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I've been mowing for a while. Backpack blowers are extremely hard on your back and I would avoid one at all costs. As a home owner it may not be that big of a deal but it's work after 20 minutes and it is still a pain in the ass to put that thing on. They come in at about 25 lbs and a handheld is about 10 pounds. It's a major difference.

Most homeowners are fine with a handheld. You would have to be dealing with a serious amount of leaves? to validate a backpack blower. I would look into other ways to deal with it such as a better leaf collection for your lawn mower.

If you have your heart set on a backpack, get the biggest one you can. You'll want to get that nonsense over with as quick as possible. We actually switched to Redmax 8500's. They have been absolutely flawless and have power for days. They are showing up more and more on the commercial guys around here. They are all fine at the end of the day. See which one feels the most comfortable and go with that one.
 

Mackie

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I have 1.5 acres with heavy leaves. I've owned 2 Stihl handheld blowers, an Echo backpack blower and a walk-behind push blower.

The hand held blowers are great for clearing grass clippings/debris from driveways - also for getting leaves away from house and around bushes. Easy to handle.

The backpack is great for heavier volumes. Per the comment above - I never thought the weight an issue until I made the mistake of leaning over with it on to clear leaves from under a deck and did a number on my lower back, which I'm still sort of dealing with.

The walk behind blower is great for big jobs - especially if you're just blowing leaves into the woods like my case and not collecting. Obviously you can't use one to clear leaves close to the house.

The backpack is the best compromise if you have lots of leaves to clear.


Here is the backpack I purchased - I bought from a lawn equipment store for the same price as HD but agree with all the favorable reviews - I can't see a need to spend another couple hundred over this one for the commercial grade units which don't offer an appreciable improvement. MPH was more important than volume for my application.


ECHO 215 MPH 510 CFM 58.2cc Gas 2-Stroke Cycle Backpack Leaf Blower with Tube Throttle-PB-580T - The Home Depot
 

TheShadow

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Stihl. Gas. Men do not own electric yard tools.

^^^^This. Add to your personal cylinder count.

Backpack blowers are extremely hard on your back and I would avoid one at all costs.

Wut!??? Man up, bro. Backpacks are the most funnest way to walk around looking like a berserk spaceman. I have 3 Stihls; a 600 , and a 700. Also have one of the handhelds, but it's not as much fun. With the backpacks, I have the power to blow away cats, dogs and school children. It's all about how you live life that defines you.
 

velocicaur

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What are you doing with the leaves when you get them blow out? A trailer? Blow to the curb for pick up? Half a dozen yard waste bins?

What kind of mower are you using? I'd get a mower with a powerflow setup (if you don't already have one) to deal with the bulk of the leaves and do it every other day. A regular bagger unit would be okay but it can be a pain when the leaves are wet. You have a small enough lot that you'll be able to keep up with it that way and it should only take 15 or 20 minutes. You can quickly buzz around and fill up once or twice and call it a day.

We have 7 mature trees and that is what we do. We do have quite a bit of landscaping so we use a handheld blower though I have used the 8500. We collect very 2-3 days (15 mins) and put them in yard bins for the local company to pick up. 2 bins is enough to stay on top of it and it is VERY easy to unload the mower bags into them. Our garbage company has special rates for fall use. It's so much better than dealing with tarps, trailers, bags, or any of that nonsense.
 

roadracer247

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Thanks for the advice everyone. Decided to go with the Stihl BG 86 C-E Handheld Blower. I had great customer service when I bought my chainsaw from the local Stihl dealer here in town. I like supporting the mom&pop shops that have treated me right. Also realized I could get by just fine with a handheld.
 
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98 svt

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Just get Mantequilla to do it.

giphy_zpsgfm7dlya.gif
 

jshen

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I bought Echo over Stihl because Home Depot sold it with warranty and they are right down the street. Local Stihl vendors have a "if your not commericial we don't want to bother with you" attitude. One caveat...the damn air/fuel mixture is set by factory..Change gas filter regularly to keep it performing well..

Mine is a back pack blower that right now does not sit well on my shoulder (torn rotator cup awaiting surgery) My mower- a 15 year old Craftsman w/Kohler engine..driver...has mulching blades...and vacuum system. I can mulch over leaves repeated and reduce them 10/1 then vacuum them up for bagging.
 

Malern28us

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This is the one I purchased.
ECHO 233 MPH 651 CFM 63.3cc Gas 2-Stroke Cycle Backpack Leaf Blower with Tube Throttle-PB-755ST - The Home Depot
Got it for 15% off that price, 5 year warranty at the local Echo dealer. They also gave me a gallon of their Echo Brand premix and enough two stroke oil to mix my own fuel for the next couple of years. For a consumer though, I give them a lot of business. Bought my zero turn Simplicity, a walk behind trimmer, two chain saws and the backpack blower from them in the last three years.
 

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